The market for porcelain continues to grow, while sales of sandstone are still in decline. Good quality porcelain is now cheaper to buy than natural sandstone, so it’s an obvious choice for landscapers and consumers.

India has lost a large chunk of its natural sandstone market around the world, not just in the UK. We expect sales for sandstone to continue to dip, although pricing may start to decrease as suppliers try to recoup losses from falling volumes.

Shipping prices are finally reducing, but this seems more difficult to manage than when prices were going up! Like everyone in the supply chain, we are left with stock which is now worth less than it was when we bought it.

Supplies of European porcelain are now stable, particularly with stock from Spain and Italy. This has made up for the difficulties in getting porcelain from Poland, where our supplier was located on the Ukraine border.

Consumer confidence is at its lowest since records began (-41). That said, the top end of the market, which is financially secure, continue to spend on landscaping and garden projects. Good landscapers are still fully booked into next year, so there is a pipeline of demand. At the bottom end, the decline in sales is likely to fall further as people struggle to get by.

This leaves middle earners where there is potential for growth for DIY. Stockists say retail sales are falling – possibly due to holidays – but these could return depending on the impact of energy increases. Those middle earners with a bit of money are more likely to do it themselves and save money on labour rather than the product.

Supply chain issues have resolved, and there is plenty of stock available, so merchants don’t need to bulk buy – merely keep their stocks topped up.

Looking ahead, reducing demand may raise competitiveness between merchants. So keep stocks plentiful, as customers will go elsewhere if you don’t have what they need when they need it.

Sustainability remains a concern and our policy now is only to use electric vehicles as company cars. It’s difficult to cut emissions due to the nature of our products but we continue to look for ways to offset this